The Symbologist

Chapter 17

DI Jones sat on her friend's bright purple couch. Personally, Jones didn't like flashy things that stood out, but her friend was kind enough to let her stay at her place while Jones' place remained a crime scene, so she had no right to complain.

"Checking the news again?" A girl with bright pink hair with neon yellow streaks in it plopped down on the couch next to Jones, "Can you open this for me?"

"You can do it, Ari, I've seen you open one before," Jones pointed out before opening the bottle of apple juice for the bright-haired girl.

Ari giggled, "How observant of you!"

Jones resisted the urge to give Ari a piece of her mind and handed the opened bottle back to Ari.

"Take it as a compliment," Ari said, taking a sip of apple juice, "What's happening in the great big world today?"

"Nothing too exciting," Jones admitted, but she spoke too soon.

Abby Fisher, a young reporter, already immensely successful at age 21, appeared on screen. Jones enjoyed listening to her. Abby was a determined woman who had a very unique perspective on pretty much everything.

"Hello everyone. I'm Abby Fisher and welcome to BBC news. Today, two officers were found dead at 8am this morning. And not just any officers, these were the very two officers in charge of solving the serial killer case that has been keeping us on our toes and haunting us in our sleep. This was no accident, it was murder."

Silence.

"Hey Joni," Ari poked Jones in the arm, "You okay over there? You seem a bit...pale."

Jones stood up, "I need to get to the crime scene, something doesn't sit right."

Ari nodded, "Okay, I'll drive you."

"Thanks," Jones took out her phone and dialed the commissioner as she and Ari walked out the door.

"Hello, commissioner, I assume you've seen the news?"

"DI Jones, yes I have."

"I understand I'm most likely a suspect in the case, but-"

"I'll give you the address, DI Jones, hurry over there."

Surprised, Jones paused for a moment before answering, "Appreciated, thank you, commissioner."

"Sounds like it went well," Ari said, starting the car as Jones climbed into the front passenger seat.

Jones nodded, "It did."

After 35 minutes of driving, going slightly over the speed limit but not enough to get a ticket for it, Ari and Jones arrived at the crime scene.

"This place gives me the chills but the flowers make it happy at the same time," Ari said with a frown, "Confusing, totally mixed signals."

Ari shook her head and turned to face Jones. "Anyway, I'll wait for you here," Ari offered, "I can get started on my story anyway."

Jones nodded and got out of the car. Ari was in her final year of college and although she was a peppy, relatively laid-back person, she still took her studies seriously. It was something Jones had come to like about her. Even with the big age gap, Ari and Jones got along just fine.

"DI Jones," the commissioner greeted her, taking off his cap, "I'm glad you could make it."

"Always," Jones answered.

"I found this at the station. Sergeant Carla had left it on her desk. I believe there is information in here that is of importance," the commissioner reached into one of the many pockets that adorned his beige uniform and produced a notepad.

"Thank you, commissioner," DI Jones took the notepad, deciding she'd look through it after she checked out the crime scene. It seemed as if she was back on the case, but she wasn't entirely sure.

"Good day, DI Jones," the commissioner put his cap back on and left to speak with a few other officers.

Jones nodded and went to look at the bodies. Goodness, she thought as she stared at two bodies splayed on the old, cracked pavement. Something most definitely wasn't right here, she just couldn't lay her finger on what.